Powerhouse Pancakes

In my last post I said I would be absent for awhile, because we are having a lot of repeats for dinner this week. Jenny sweetly commented that she'd miss me......so Jenny, this one's for you!!

This morning it was cold and rainy, and it just seemed like a good morning for pancakes. There really isn't anything too special about these pancakes, no fancy fillings or flavors, just your run of the mill pancakes. So, what makes these pancakes powerhouses you ask........the addition of wheat germ. Wheat germ really gives these pancakes a nutritional boost. And, best of all, they've finally broken me from my usual pre-mixed pancake mix that includes milk powder (it was really the last thing holding me back from having a diet completely free of animals and animal by-products). These were so simple to make, I'm not sure what took me so long to break free from that pre mixed stuff. The kids all loved them (I have my extra kid today, so I was feeding 3), and they are the true test of whether a recipe is a success or not!!

Powerhouse Pancakes

1 cup plain rice milk

1 tsp white vinegar

1/2 cup unbleached all purpose flour

1/4 cup whole wheat flour

1/4 cup wheat germ

1 Tbs sugar

2 tsp baking powder

1/8 tsp salt

1/8 tsp pure vanilla extract

1 Tbs canola oil

1 Tbs organic unsweetened applesauce

Combine rice milk and vinegar and set aside. Combine dry ingredients in a bowl. Add the milk mixture, vanilla, oil and applesauce and mix until smooth. Spoon or pour batter onto griddle. Cook until edges are cooked and bubbles appear in the center, then flip gently. Cook a few minutes more, then remove gently from griddle. Serve with warm maple syrup, and enjoy.

I was able to get nine pancakes from this recipe, but I make them fairly small for the kids. You may need to double the recipe if you are feeding bigger eaters. Or, make extras and freeze them for quick weekday breakfasts. I freeze extra pancakes between layers of paper towel in a quart sized freezer bag, then just pop them in the toaster on the lightest setting until they have thawed.

Sunday Morning Pancakes

A few weeks ago I blogged that we have pancakes for breakfast every Sunday. Today was no different. Today however we had a change from our usual Old Fashioned Pancakes.

Yesterday when scouring the veggie food blog community I came across Jenny's blog featuring these yummy Apple Cinnamon Pancakes. I had most of the ingredients, so I decided to give them a try. I mostly followed her recipe. However, I didn't have any pastry flour so I subbed 3/4 cup whole wheat flour and 3/4 cup unbleached all purpose flour. I also subbed rice milk for the soy and added an additional 1/4 cup of rice milk. And finally, I didn't use the "flax eggs", opting to skip any sort of egg replacement.

These pancakes are delicious, and a great change from our regular routine. The girls have never really been fans of any of the variations of pancakes I've made in the past, so I wasn't hopeful that they would accept these. Boy was I wrong....Mairin finished her plate in a flash, and Stella ate 2 pancakes of her own!!